Beetle Kill

[kruger]

I get most of my hardwoods (ash and locust) in Western Nebraska, but do some cutting in the Snowy Range of southern Wyoming. We have had a big issue in the Routt National Forest with pine beetles.

I'm a little nervous about bringing recently killed pine back into town and storing in on the same property as numerous mature trees in my yards. Does anyone have any experience with cutting and burning beetle kill pine?

I searched for a existing thread and didn't find one. Thanks, Aaron

 

[Lumber-Jack]

This forum is great for those obsessed with wood burning and collecting, but every thread in this forum has about as many views as there are members. I have read that as long as the trees have been dead for a year then the beetles (and larvae) will be gone from the tree, as they need live trees to live and reproduce.
However, if you really want to protect your (pine?) trees on your land then you should do a little internet research and even call your local forestry office. Don't rely on the advice you get here.

Start here

BTW, I burn mostly pine beetle kill.

 

[moosetrek]

Check here for some more info...

(broken link removed to http://www.cheyennetrees.com/mountainpinebeetle.html)

 

[Insanad]

This forum is great for those obsessed with wood burning and collecting, but every thread in this forum has about as many views as there are members. I have read that as long as the trees have been dead for a year then the beetles (and larvae) will be gone from the tree, as they need live trees to live and reproduce.
However, if you really want to protect your (pine?) trees on your land then you should do a little internet research and even call your local forestry office. Don't rely on the advice you get here.

Start here

BTW, I burn mostly pine beetle kill.

I see that you're an expert on this site, so here's my questions,

Is beetle killed pine hard to split,cut, etc. and is it messier than non-diseased pine, does it burn too hot and damage the stove?

We have thousands of acres of beetle killed pine in the mts. above Cedar City, Utah and our home is at 5,600 ft. elevation. We'll be purchasing a wood stove but I haven't decided on which one yet. Are some more efficient with pine as the main wood or does it matter?

Is it better to split and stack the pine for a yr. before using, or since it's already dead standing or dead/down is it already dried properly? What are the best tools for splitting already dead wood? Is it worth it to purchase a splitter, especially since my husband and I are getting older? Would we recoup the costs in 10 yrs. or should we buy our wood pre-cut and delivered? What are reasonable prices for delivered cord wood?

 

[moosetrek]

We burn almost exclusively beetle kill pine. I grew up burning in NY and ME, on hardwoods. A couple observations:
1) Pine burns good
2) pine burns fine
3) pine is cheap (and burns fine)

In answer to your questions, I split all ours by hand (well, not by hand, that would hurt - but with a maul). It's often dry when standing dead, and often useable right away - as long as you get some with the bark peeling and some big splits up the trunk you should be fine for that season. If it's got the majority of needles, leave it another year.

I will build a splitter this year, but only because I have access to some huge elm rounds (3-4') and splitting elm by hand sucks. If you have the $, go for it it's worth it to spend the energy stacking and not splitting. If not, we've never had trouble keeping a steady supply of pine split and stacked.

A cord seems to go about $120-140, obviously free on your land, but it's only about $10-15 per cord if you cut your own on the national forest permit, most offices will issue them and provide a map where you can cut. We cut the trees into 4' logs, my wife and I load on the trailer, and I cut and split at home where refreshments are close at hand (afterwards, of course). One nice thing about pine is it seasons quickly, so the guy selling last year's wood as seasoned is possibly right.

For a stove, we heard from our dealer that some stoves burn better than others in this part of the country; not exclusively because of the pine vs hardwood deal, but partly because of the elevation. We've heard good things about PE (biased, as we ordered one), Jotul, Lopi, etc. but I'm sure all are good stoves. Our Englander i s a beast of a heater, and still efficient on the wood. I'd recommend it for consideration in your pool. We'd keep it but my wife and I have always wanted a cast iron stove. Good luck!

 

[Insanad]

Thankyou very much for your experience with the pine stuff and the stove recommendations. We actually DO NOT have any wood on our own little acre but the forests are nearby and people with trucks and chainsaws could bring the big logs to us and then we could have access to it. After evaluating the costs of a truck, insurance, tires, etc. we have decided that we're still better off to just use our Roo and the trailer for most little jobs and hauling from the hardware store and pay someone to deliver the big stuff.

I also think the idea of our very own splitter is a good choice, especially if we rule out a HASA. Given my husbands bad shoulder and my bad aim I think it would save both of us from a deadly or painful accident. I've also heard that we don't get younger, but actually OLDER, which seems to bear true every year so I'm beginning to think there's some merit in planning for less physical stress than More physical stress. One splitter, even at retail price is cheaper than stitching on a severed leg or rotater cup surgery (although the "Do it Yourself home surgery kits are getting more economical).

I will look up those stoves you recommended and print out the stats on all of them so we can decide.

 

[firefighterjake]

. . . In answer to your questions, I split all ours by hand (well, not by hand, that would hurt - but with a maul).. . . !

I just had a picture for a moment or two of you lining up a round and then with a Ninja-like yell "HI YA!" karate chopping the round into two neat looking splits.

 

[d.n.f.]

I get most of my hardwoods (ash and locust) in Western Nebraska, but do some cutting in the Snowy Range of southern Wyoming. We have had a big issue in the Routt National Forest with pine beetles.

I'm a little nervous about bringing recently killed pine back into town and storing in on the same property as numerous mature trees in my yards. Does anyone have any experience with cutting and burning beetle kill pine?

I searched for a existing thread and didn't find one. Thanks, Aaron

I burn it all the time. Seems to be dryer when cut (depending on how dead it is).

Has a funky bluish tinge/streaks. Furniture guys/flooring guys are making some really neat stuff out of it.

 

[moosetrek]

. . . In answer to your questions, I split all ours by hand (well, not by hand, that would hurt - but with a maul).. . . !

I just had a picture for a moment or two of you lining up a round and then with a Ninja-like yell "HI YA!" karate chopping the round into two neat looking splits.

Usually I just use my jedi mind control and tell it to split. Works about as well as telling out border collie puppy to sit still.

 

[firefighterjake]

. . . In answer to your questions, I split all ours by hand (well, not by hand, that would hurt - but with a maul).. . . !

I just had a picture for a moment or two of you lining up a round and then with a Ninja-like yell "HI YA!" karate chopping the round into two neat looking splits.

Usually I just use my jedi mind control and tell it to split. Works about as well as telling out border collie puppy to sit still.

HehHeh . . . I usually use my Jedi mind powers when I'm grocery shopping with my wife.

First I try to impress her by looking at the doors at the supermarket as I approach them and I gesture with my hand while saying "Open" and they magically spring aside . . . needless to say she is not very impressed.

Then I try to use my Jedi mind control by suggesting to her that we should buy more Little Debbie oatmeal pies and some M & Ms instead of the reduced fat Cheez-Its and seedless grapes she thinks is a better use of our grocery money . . . needless to say she is once again not very impressed with my Jedi powers.

 

[Insanad]

Jedi Powers are nothing compared with the Feminine version where we develop eyes in the back of our heads during our first pregnancy and they become sharper with each subsequent birth. In fact, right now even though my son is 350 miles away at college I can see that he's eating a frozen burrito right out of the freezer and didn't bother to even microwave it because he slept in and is late for class. He's just gnawing at it while he rides the bus to the campus. I also can see that he's not done his laundry in nine weeks and is wearing his underwear inside out for the second time.

So did anyone see "The Men Who Stare At Goats"? Some very hilarious Jedi Powers there.

 

[Lumber-Jack]

This forum is great for those obsessed with wood burning and collecting, but every thread in this forum has about as many views as there are members. I have read that as long as the trees have been dead for a year then the beetles (and larvae) will be gone from the tree, as they need live trees to live and reproduce.
However, if you really want to protect your (pine?) trees on your land then you should do a little internet research and even call your local forestry office. Don't rely on the advice you get here.

Start here

BTW, I burn mostly pine beetle kill.

I see that you're an expert on this site, so here's my questions,

Well at least I got one person fooled. ;-P LOL

I also think the idea of our very own splitter is a good choice, especially if we rule out a HASA. Given my husbands bad shoulder and my bad aim I think it would save both of us from a deadly or painful accident. I've also heard that we don't get younger, but actually OLDER, which seems to bear true every year so I'm beginning to think there's some merit in planning for less physical stress than More physical stress. One splitter, even at retail price is cheaper than stitching on a severed leg or rotater cup surgery (although the "Do it Yourself home surgery kits are getting more economical).
.

That's funny stuff :lol:

I thought about buying a splitter too, but I have two young sons who do the majority of wood splitting by hand (with a maul) and they are covered by our medical plan that we have to pay into anyway, so the way I look at it it make more sense economically to not buy the splitter right now. ;-)